The Master of the Hill
by HuuskerDu
Summary: After surviving a near-fatal attack by a dangerous mushi, Ginko finds himself recuperating in a high and remote cabin under the care of a strange girl with white hair and green eyes. During his rehabilitation he learns the girl's secrets and of the future being prepared for him. But will he accept or reject his fate? COMPLETE.
1. Chapter 1: Lost Memories

**A/N:**

**This is the first published fanfic story for Mushishi that includes material from the second season. The second season concluded without an ending, so I gave Ginko one. It**** is a happy ending, and I hope you enjoy it.**

**Legal Disclaimer:**

**I do not own Mushishi. This is a work of fan fiction.**

* * *

**Chapter 1: Lost Memories**

"Go away! Shoo! Get out of here!"

Ginko stood in front of the kuchinawa and blocked it. He knew the large serpent could not travel under the riverbed or under any other moving water source, and being an earth mushi it could not swim across it. So he used the icy river's fork as a choke point. That way the creature would be forced to crawl above ground at the river's edge and appear before him.

And it did. The great white wyrm reared up its massive head as it made its characteristic deep sinusoidal 'bong' noise, like a great bell.

Ginko detested the creature. Kuchinawas were indiscriminate destroyers who consumed not only the great and gentle spirit guardians of the mountains but even the memories of their existence. Whenever a kuchinawa killed a mountain guardian the results were often devastating for the surrounding villages that depended on the mountain's beneficence for their livelihood: its freshwater springs for drinking, the snowmelt that irrigated the rice paddies, and the lush plant and animal life that surrounded it. He knew that all that would end if the kuchinawa slew the mountain's guardian.

And so Ginko waved his hands in front of the large serpentine creature like a matador in front of a bull. "I have taken away your _mugura*_! Get out of here! Leave this place and never return!"

He knew the creature would not attack him, at least not directly. It targeted only mountain guardians, the near-immortal mushi entities of enormous power that ruled the mountaintops and stood athwart any large hilltop or mountaintop that had a strong light-vein flowing deep under its roots. Those light veins, sometimes called 'rivers of light', were underground paths of pure energy that were the primary source of the mushi's power. And so kuchinawa rarely bothered with humans and usually ignored them completely.

But not this time.

The serpent stopped and looked at him. That was odd. Then Ginko sensed its murderous intent against him.

_Uh oh.._

The giant serpant charged at him. It charged directly at him.

Wait, why was it attacking a human? There was no reason for it. Ginko was no mountain guardian. He wasn't even a mushi. There was no cause for it to attack him. Granted, he had just taken away the creature's mugura, the tiny vine-like mushi that served as the nervous-system of the mountain, in order to prevent the snake-entity from flowing through the mugura to locate and find the guardian, but that should have only annoyed the creature, not throw it into a mad fury.

But this was no time to idly explore such academic imponderables. Adashino might have paused to wonder about it, but Ginko knew better. His life was in danger right at that moment.

He started to run. He knew the creature was faster than him.

_It's going to catch up to me soon. I have to find a way to slow it down._

Kuchinawa cannot cross moving water, at least not easily. They could not burrow under a riverbed, only go over it. And being an earth-based mushi they could not swim. If the water current was strong enough and fast enough it was possible that it would fall through the ice and be carried away by the river.

Ginko knew that crossing the ice over a river was always fraught with peril regardless of how cold the air temperature was. The moving water currents under the ice tended to make the thickness of the surface highly unpredictable as the currents continually eroded it away in eddies and swirls. He knew that falling into the icy river would almost certainly be fatal to him.

He dropped his backpack and ran as fast as he could over the ice to try to reach the other side. The ice started to crack beneath him. Then he heard the 'bongs' of the kuchinawa behind him and the loud crunching of ice.

He was only 6 feet from reaching the far shore when his legs finally went through the ice. Although the river water was only a foot deep here, his feet felt as if steel daggers were stabbing into them.

He could hear that the 'bong' sounds were getting close, only a few yards behind him now. He could actually see the white glow of the kuchinawa's body starting to envelop him. Then he stumbled and fell onto the shoreline.

And then he knew no more.

* * *

_Discontinuity._

Darkness.

Then he heard a woman's voice.

_Come back._

Tanyuu?

_You made a promise to me. I intend to make you keep it._

Tanyuu..

Then he heard a man's voice.

_This is not your time. Don't worry, I'll make the arrangements._

Adashino?

Then he heard an older woman's voice make an exasperated sigh.

_Yoki, you idiot. What possessed you to challenge a kuchinawa for control of the hill?_

Time passed of unknown duration.

Then he heard a young girl singing a tune that he did not recognize. He slowly opened his eye. As he blinked against the bright light that was streaming in from a sunlit window he saw that he was laying on his back in a small wooden bed. A pair of heavy wool blankets were tightly wrapped around him.

He slowly turned his head to face the direction of the song. The girl was not unpleasant to look at. She was young and thin, perhaps age 16 or so. She had a wide mouth and long flowing hair that was pure white. But her most striking physical features were her eyes.

Those eyes were bright, alive. And emerald green.

He saw that she was using a needle and thread to finish darning a rather large tear in the left pantleg of his slacks, one that he did not remember making.

As she completed her sewing task, the girl finally noticed him staring at her and stopped her singing. She stood up and approached him. She put her hand on his forehead and spoke softly, "Your chills seem to be gone. How do you feel?"

Ginko tried to sit up and winced. The girl firmly but gently and pressed him back down again. "Don't try to get up. You have two cracked ribs, and you can't walk. Your feet must have fallen into the water. They were like ice-blocks when I found you."

He slowly laid back down into bed again. She re-tucked the blankets around him. Then she bent down and pulled up his slacks and showed the stitch-work to him. "I just finished repairing the tear in your slacks. Do you approve?"

She allowed him to hold the cloth and inspect it. Ginko noted the expert darning job. "This repair is perfect. These slacks look like new."

She gave him a gentle smile. "I am a seamstress. My father was a rather well-known tailor. Our village was difficult to reach, but people would come from miles around for our family's tailoring services because of our reputation."

Ginko saw that she wore a simple tan cotton dress with a cloth belt that was tied around the waist. The pleated tan skirt just covered her knees. Because of the belt, the skirt flared outward slightly to give her elfin figure a more hourglass shape, and the front of the dress was criss-crossed over her breasts to accentuate her rather modest bustline. Ginko guessed that she had probably sown the dress herself. He had to admit that she did a wonderful job in making it.

"I see. So you are from a family of tailors. I must say that your dress looks very nice on you."

Did she blush a bit? "Thank you. I made it myself."

"So your family lives here, then?"

She looked down. "I lost my whole family. Most of my village. I live alone now."

Ginko's face showed concern. "What happened to them?"

She looked away. "Something drew them away. A monster. They never returned."

"I'm sorry." An awkward silence followed. Finally he asked, "What is your name?"

"My name is Shuuri Irui."

"I see. May I ask how long have you been living here all by yourself?"

She looked down again. "I'm not sure."

"But, don't you at least have any visitors?"

Instead she changed the subject. "Why do you have one eye?"

He decided to keep the explanation brief. "I lost it to a mushi when I was young."

"You are a mushi master."

"Yes. Uhm, may I ask how old you are?"

She said evasively, "Old enough. And you?"

He told her his age.

She tsked tsked. "You do not look it. You have the cares and weariness of a man who is much older. I would have guessed that your age was well over 40."

Ginko was annoyed by that estimate. Then he said, "You still haven't asked me my name.."

She gave him a mildly condescending look. "That is because there is no need. You are Ginko the travelling mushi-master. Your name has become rather well-known in these parts."

"Well, thank you for saving my life."

She folded her arms and gave him a disappointed look, "You did your best to try to end it. My word, challenging a kuchinawa.. Are you mad? That was practically suicidal."

"What? I was only trying to shoo it away.."

"I think the kuchinawa begged to differ with you. You are lucky it fell through the ice before it could eat you. The kuchinawa is weak when travelling over water. That fact probably saved your life. Still, you didn't need to drown it and kill it."

"Hmm. You seem to know a thing or two about mushi, young miss."

"I know quite a bit, actually."

Ginko tried to sit up again. "Aren't you a bit young to be claiming that? You are too immature to be a mushi-master. You must be an apprentice. Who is your master?"

She remained silent.

Finally she said softly, speaking almost to herself, "All memories are taken by the ginko, but for one name..."

He blinked his eye at her in confusion. She was talking of the ginko, the white glowing salamander-like creature that dwelled in the pond of the tokoyami. She was referring to when Ginko nearly died at the hands of that dark monster. But instead of dying he was effectively reborn: when he arose from the pond his hair was pure white, his right eye emerald green, his left eye blinded and hollow. He had no memories of his past save one, the name 'ginko'.

And so he took that name for himself.

"Wait, how could you possibly know about my name?"

She said simply, "Because I was there, how else?"

"Oh..?" He was confused. He had no memory of the girl. He did not recall seeing her when he arose from the pond.

The young girl continued to watch him in silence.

Ginko started to think. Then he nodded to himself. Finally he said, "Look, obviously I can see that you were someone who must have been important to me in my past. Someone that I have forgotten after the ginko stole my memories."

He looked at the young girl carefully. "Your face looks like mine. A bit younger perhaps, but the resemblance is remarkable. You must be a close relative of mine."

This time the girl blinked her eyes. "What? A relation? You and me?"

He looked at the young girl in earnest. "Are you my sister? Or perhaps my daughter? Our physical resemblance is striking. Don't try to deny it."

She was speechless. Finally she said, "Oh, Yoki, you adorable idiot."

"Yoki is my real name?"

She looked at him sadly, "Yes, it is."

"I don't remember it.."

"I gave you several of hints about who I am just now, but I can see that you remember nothing about me. I told you that I am a seamstress**. Does that ring any bells?"

"So? Your name matches your occupation. That's fairly common."

_Should I tell him? Should I tell him that his own mother died right in front of him? No, what purpose would that serve? That I took him in as an orphan only to tell him that I despaired and waited to die as well?_

She finally said, "Ginko, we are not related. But I do know you. Rather well."

"Hmm.. were you my apprentice at one point?"

She stared at him, then she started to titter, then laughed aloud.

"Me? _Your_ apprentice? Oh, that is rich." She doubled over from laughing again.

Ginko rolled his green eye in mild irritation. "Fine. Wrong guess then."

She wiped the tears from her eyes. "Oh Yoki, I have so many memories of you.."

"You do?"

"Yes. And trust me, they are not flattering of you. You were curious and inquisitive, but reckless and foolish. You nearly got yourself killed repeatedly. And you're still doing it now with that kuchinawa. How in the world did you live so long?"

Ginko crossed his arms. He did not appreciate being lectured by this girl. "Are you sure you're not my bratty younger sister heaping abuse on me?"

"Very funny. And for the record, no, I am not your sister." She gave him a look as she scolded him, "You are a reckless fool, practically suicidal. First you go charging into the tokoyami's pond and let yourself get light-zapped, then you grab me and get yourself pulled in to the tokoyami***..."

"Yes, about that. You've obviously been exposed to the ginko's light. But you have two eyes."

She re-crossed her arms, both eyes shining bright. They had an unearthly sheen. "That is right. I do."

"But how?"

"Consider it a test for you, a test for the high-and-mighty mushi-master. I'll wait."

He furrowed his brow. It was at times like this that he really wished he could have a cigarette.

She had laughed in his face at the idea of her being his apprentice. So not that then. But.. wait. She was far too young to have gained all her knowledge of mushi on her own. Then the thought struck him.

"Tell me your age, and don't avoid the question this time." His first clear memory was when he staggered away from the tokoyami's pond and met the kind peddler who took him in shortly thereafter. Ginko had just turned 11 years old. And all that had happened 18 years ago.

She said simply, "I am 18 years old."

Ah. So. He smiled. "I see. You are the reincarnation of my mother."

Her arms remained crossed.

She simply said, "Wrong."

Wrong? "But.."

"Yoki, I swear I don't know how you can even remember to breathe sometimes. Think. A reincarnation is a new life. In a reincarnation most of the memories of the former life are lost. The rest are vague, like a feeling of deja-vu. And I will tell you right now that I have a perfectly crystal-clear set of memories in my mind of every single foolish, stupid, reckless act that you ever did in my presence, clear as a bell, as if they all happened yesterday. _Baka shonen_!"

Such rudeness. Wait. Could she be? She couldn't. But with that attitude, yes, she could.

"You were.. my.." He hesitated to speak it aloud. ".. my master?"

She addressed him like a befuddled student in a classroom. "Congratulations, Yoki. After guessing just about every possible wrong permutation possible you are finally, by a process of dogged elimination, are actually, amazingly enough, gradually approaching the truth."

"Only approaching?"

Another eyeroll. "Enough for today. You still need to build up your strength. I'll make you some green tea and steamed rice. Then I'll change your bedpan. Just sit back and rest." She walked out.

With her out of the room he finally was able to think clearly. Argh, why did she fluster him so much? He was a mushi-master with all his years of skills and experience, and yet she had just made him feel like a stupid child.

Hmm. He began to reflect her behavior towards him. He thought he was starting to understand Shuuri. She was full of bluster as she mercilessly disparaged him. _But the lady doth protest too much,_ he thought.

If anything, he thought, she acted around him more like an exasperated but devoted wife berating a henpecked husband. If she was truly upset with him she would have complained loudly about changing his bedpan, but she didn't. She had flatly denied being his mother (or any relative of his for that matter). And yet she was actually taking good care of him, very good care in fact, as best as she knew how.

So what was her real relationship to him anyway? It was clear that she knew him and did not entirely dislike him. She had even called him 'an adorable idiot'. Indeed, she was interacting with him more like they were an old married couple. Or was this the bluster of a tsundere? And if so, was she in fact secretly in love with him? He thought it might be possible.

Finally he shook his head. Eventually she would reveal to him their relationship in the past. Or he would figure it out on his own. Either way he would know.

He sighed to himself. Then he turned his head towards the door.

Shuuri instantly returned with a tea tray. She set it next to him briskly. There was a haughty expression on her face.

He suppressed a grin. As soon as he had turned his head to face the door she had spontaneously marched into the room. It was obvious to him that she had been secretly gazing at him from behind the door for at least a minute, probably by spying between the door hinges.

After she dropped off the tray she returned a few minutes later with a bowl of steamed rice. He thanked her politely and ate it heartily. She left the room in a prim march, then she turned and peered at him again through the door hinges, thinking that he didn't notice the slight change in shadows that revealed her hiding place.

She watched him in secret with a strange mixture of compassion, sadness, hope, and worry.

_Oh Yoki, I'm so sorry. I don't know if I believe Adashino or not, but sooner or later I will be forced to tell you what happened._

_Why, oh why, did you go after the kuchinawa? The guardian here could have defeated it without your help. But now because of your foolish act I will be forced to do the hardest thing that I have ever done. And your life will change forever because of it._

_Yoki, oh Yoki, please don't hate me. Please._

_This will be even harder than when I saved you the first time.._

_.. when I died._

* * *

**A/N:**

Shuuri Irui is listed as an OC for reasons that will become more apparent later in the story.

* See Season 1 Episode 11, "The Sleeping Mountain".

** The kanji for the word seamstress ('one who sews') is _Nui _(縫う). This is not a coincidence. The kanji for the name Shuuri Irui (修理衣類) means 'one who repairs' (Shuuri) clothing (Irui), which is more-or-less the same thing. Basically, Shuuri was testing Ginko's memory to see if he remembered Nui's name and he failed the test.

*** See Season 1 Episode 12, "One-Eyed Fish".


	2. Chapter 2: The Last Walk Up the Hill

**Chapter 2: The Last Walk Up the Hill**

As the days went by, Ginko and Shuuri settled into a kind of routine. She continued to take care of him in bed, feeding him, tending to him, all while insisting that he remain there. After nightfall he had noticed that she often stayed up late. Through the open door he could often see the indirect glow of a fire in the hearth that was kept well lit far into the night.

One night he was restless and woke up at around 4 AM. He had to pee. He cursed his legs as they had not yet healed and were still tightly bandaged. As he used the bedpan he faintly heard Shuuri's voice in her own room that was down the hall.

The girl was singing. It was the same tune that he heard before when she was darning his slacks. He did not recognize the melody nor the lyrics.

_I walked ten thousand miles, ten thousand miles to see you_

_And every gasp of breath, I grabbed it just to find you_

_I climbed up every hill to get to you_

_And every single step of the way, of pain,_

_Every single night and day,  
_

_I searched for you,_

_And then I finally found you_

He smiled. It was a gentle song.

On a hunch he pressed his ear against the headboard of the bed. The headboard acted like a sounding board, connecting the bed to the floor joists and from there to the wooden beams below the floorboards in her own room. He could hear the soft subaudible whump-whump of the floorboards as someone danced and jumped in the other room.

He smiled to himself. The girl was joyful - ecstatic in fact. And yet this girl had tragically lost her entire family to the tokoyami in the pond and had confessed to him that she had completely despaired as she bitterly awaited her own inevitable death at the hands of that same creature. It had taken away everyone she ever knew. And yet now she was secretly dancing for joy. What had changed?

Was it because of him? Somehow he doubted it. Oh, she was happy that she had finally found him - there was no question about it. But that was not what drove her and gave her such joyful passion. It was something else.

He knew that she was infected with mushi, just like he was. The signs were unmistakable with her hair color and eye color. But what kind? He detected no darkness in her. Nothing like the black tokoyami seemed to dwell within her. But she did show the outward signs of receiving the light of the ginko. And yet it did not steal her eye. That was strange. She had challenged Ginko to puzzle-out the mystery. That meant she knew the reason herself. He had a few of his own theories about it, but he decided to keep them to himself for now.

The spirit of the tokoyami had infested his own dark eye. It was why he attracted mushi. At the age of 13 the mushsi-master Suguro* had explained to the young Ginko that the tokoyami's darkness inside his accursed eye could never be removed or excised. He could never be cured. And so he would be doomed to roam and wander the lands for the rest of his life, lest any place where he stayed for too long became infested with mushi. Because of his curse Suguro eventually asked him to leave and he did.

Despite her happiness, there was something about Shuuri that troubled Ginko. He saw that she sometimes had a hidden melancholy side. He noticed that it most often manifested itself whenever she was in his room tending to him. He suspected that her acerbic attitude toward him was a defense mechanism, lest she get too close to him. At first he wondered if it was because his injuries might be more grave than he realized, and perhaps she was afraid that he might possibly die. But no, he was getting stronger now, so that wasn't it.

Well, no matter. Sooner or later all those secrets would be revealed one way or the other. Either she would tell him or he would figure it out on his own. So there was no point in losing sleep about it now. Eventually Ginko laid back down on his pillow and fell into a dreamless slumber.

* * *

The next morning Shuuri was cleaning up after Ginko finished his breakfast and tea. After she returned Ginko announced, "I want to get out of this bed. Laying here day after day is driving me nuts."

"But you can't walk."

He pointed at where she was seated. "That chair you're sitting on has casters on it, yes? So plop me on that chair. Then wheel me outside to the front porch. I gotta go outside or I'll go stir crazy."

She sighed and then assented to his request. She moved the chair to his bedside and then started to pull him into it. He rejected her help. "Let go of me! I can do this myself."

"Yoki, you are such a child. Very well. But he careful of your legs." There were cloth bandages still wrapped around his ankles ending in large balls surrounding his feet.

"Yes, yes, fine." He was in the chair.

His caretaker said, "I will pull you backwards behind the chair. Just let your legs drag." The floors were smooth and did not catch on the bandages as she carefully pulled his chair backwards out of the bedroom and through the front door of the cabin to the outside.

Eventually they were both out on the front porch. Shuuri carefully positioned Ginko's chair so that he could have the best view.

And the view was incredible.

The wooden cabin was positioned on the side of a great hill that rose up at least 2000 feet or more. It was now early spring, and the hillside was already lush with gentle woodlands and open glades spanning as far as the eye could see. At the base of the hill was a woodland stream that joined with another fork and then another to form a river that meandered far away into the horizon.

"This is a hill? It seems more like a mountain. What is the name of this place?"

She looked down. "I do not know. I simply call it The Hill."

He asked, "How did you find this location?"

Instead of answering his question she said again, "This is The Hill." She enunciated the capital letters in those words.

She asked him, "Is it not beautiful?"

He continued to scan the horizon. "Yes, it is."

Everywhere The Hill was teaming with life. In the glade below Ginko could just make out a cloud of _un_ and _umisen-yamasen_ floating lazily by. A large ball of _nisa-kazura_ were co-mingling above them. From the glinting sun he could see a mat of _mugura_ laying on the grass below. Then he looked up at the sky and saw some puffy clouds float by. He recognized one of the clouds as a _kumohami_.

"It's glorious. I have never seen such a concentration of mushi before. Do they bother you?"

"No. The guardian protects this place."

He turned to look at her. "Yes, I know that you have a mountain guardian here."

She gave him an enigmatic smile. "We do. It keeps the mushi away from the summit." She added, "It also keeps away unwanted humans. If a band of brigands tried to attack this cabin, they will be in for a rude surprise."

"I can just imagine."

She looked out. "Some bandits tried to rob this place just before you arrived."

"What happened to them?"

She remained silent. He understood.

He asked, "Are we safe from the guardian?"

She said simply, "The guardian does not attack wanted guests or visitors, only unwanted ones."

Ginko shook his head. "I don't see how it can make that distinction. I've encountered mountain guardians before. They are feral, like all mushi. Powerful, yes. But they simply act. They exist. They don't have human-style intelligence to understand human customs, nor can they distinguish between wanted versus unwanted guests or visitors.

"This one does."

How was that possible? "Shuuri, I know a guardian will sometimes permit mushi-masters like myself with mushi inside of them to approach, but they could never distinguish between normal humans that way. So how does it do it?"

Instead of responding to his question she said, "This is a special place. Deep below The Hill is the largest concentration of _kouki_ that I have seen anywhere."

Ginko nodded. That explained the density of mushi here. Kouki was the most primitive form of all mushi life. It was the basic building block of their existence - the closest thing they have to anything like the DNA or proteins that make up the building blocks of normal non-mushi life.

All mushi are born or constructed from kouki, the white essence that flows underground through the light veins that pool under the mountain roots.

He sighed with appreciation as he continued look at the glorious scenic vista that was spread out below. "Yes, this place is indeed wonderful."

He had a brief vision of himself wandering through the glen below with Tanyuu Karibusa walking by his side**. She was the young Fourth Scribe who maintained the Great Library. Using the mysterious 'Forbidden Mushi' that were trapped within her body she had written (or had made a copy of) every scroll and had memorized their contents, making her the most knowledgeable mushi-master in the world.

But her extensive knowledge was only academic, not practical. It was because her right leg was paralyzed. It was black, stiff, and useless. It was due to the Forbidden Mushi that resided inside her bad leg, a biological legacy that was handed down from every alternate generation in the Karibusa family. Eventually it would kill her.

She resolved to end her family's curse one day. And she had made Ginko promise her that one day if she could free herself that they would walk the lands together, side by side, and revel with great joy in their shared passion in learning, understanding, and celebrating the most enigmatic form of all life on this planet.

He said wistfully, "I could spend years here simply cataloging and identifying all the new species of mushi that must surround this place."

She suddenly riveted her attention on him. "You..you would stay?" The intensity of her gaze surprised him. He saw the bright gleam in her unearthly green eyes.

"Oh, uh, sorry, I was just thinking aloud. I do need to keep moving, meeting people wherever I go to help them to understand and deal with mushi. That is why I travel from village to village, to heal those afflicted by them and to protect them, to save those I can, and to give comfort to those whom I cannot."

She looked down. "I understand. It is your fate to be a wanderer."

"Yes, it is. People need to understand that mushi are not creatures to be feared, only understood. I can help them do that."

Then she looked up at him again. "Ginko, all that long travel in the wilderness has to be incredibly hard on you. And it is dangerous to travel alone. How long do you think you can keep doing it? And look how it as aged you already! At this rate you won't live much longer.."

"Even so. As you said, it is my fate to always be a wanderer."

Suddenly the wind picked up. The early spring morning air was still rather bracing. Ginko wrapped his arms around himself and started to shiver a bit.

She saw his discomfort. "You are getting too chilly. It is time I brought you inside."

He did not protest.

After all, the scenic vista would still be there tomorrow.

* * *

A few more days passed. Ginko saw that Shuuri still had a look of worry whenever she ministered to him and changed his bandages.

She often looked out of the window, as if she was waiting for something.

Then one day there was a pounding on the front door.

Shuuri ran eagerly to open it. She smiled and hugged the visitor, who was panting heavily after having trudged up the 2000 feet from the base of The Hill.

Ginko, who was seated in his chair, knew who he was. He smiled broadly. "Adashino! What in heavens name made a stodgy old academic like you leave your nice comfortable home and walk all the way out here into the hills?"

Adashino was still panting. He glared at Shuuri. "You can thank this girl for my suffering." Then he said quietly to her, "Thank you for the message. I came as quickly as I could."

Ginko cocked his head. He had overheard. "A message?"

Adisho said matter-of-factly, "Yes. I received it from Shuuri's _uro_***."

Ginko rubbed his chin. "Interesting." It was because Ginko knew that to use the uro for passing letters required both parties to have made previous arrangements to each posses one of the two cocoons from the paired set. That meant that Shuuri and Adashino must have previously set up the communication system between them. But why?

Ginko had visited Adashino's seaside village regularly, and yet Adashino had never told him anything about Shuuri's existence. Ginko was a close friend of the proud academic, and yet he had never shared this secret with him.

Adashino removed the monocle from his right eye and asked the girl, "Have you told him?"

"No. I was waiting for you."

"Good. You did the right thing. I already passed word on to.."

Ginko was getting upset at being ignored. "Excuse me, I'm sitting right here. Tell me what?"

They both looked at him. Finally Adashino said, "All in good time, old friend. Let us have dinner tonight first. After all, we have much to catch up on."

* * *

Adashino had changed his dirty and sweaty travel clothes and made himself look presentable for the meal. While waiting he slowly rubbed the blisters on his feet. Ginko saw them. They looked painful.

Ginko then looked at his own bandaged feet. They felt fine, if a bit numb. He guessed that Shuuri had probably used a healing salve, perhaps one derived from the _kogito_, which had strong pain-killing properties. He wondered why she did not offer something like it to Adashino.

During the meal Adashino and Ginko talked animatedly about mushi lore. They both ignored Shuuri, who felt left out by their incessant babble about the more technical aspects of mushi biology and pathology. Finally she interrupted Ginko as he tried to speculate about the strange physiology of the _nisa-kazura_. She revealed its true nature, which surprised both men. Ginko suppressed a grin as he watched the learned scholar proceed to excitedly quiz the young girl about several other obscure aspects of mushi arcana. Adashino was particularly interested in her knowledge of the _kairogi_, a mushi that allowed a person's mental thoughts to be communicated to a loved one over long distances*4. However it was not a blessing. Ginko explained that an infestation of kairogi had a terrible price - one's consciousness could wander away and be lost forever - which made the kairogi an impractical tool for intentional use.

The meal was over. The three of them were now relaxing near the fireplace. But Ginko could see that the mood was starting to become tense.

Shuuri looked to Adashino with uncertainty, as if pleading for help. The mushi doctor finally stood quietly and said, "It is best just to show him." Shuuri stood as well.

Ginko raised his hand. "Stop. I already know."

The girl turned to him with a look of surprise, "You.. you do?"

"Yes. I know who you are. Who you really are."

She looked down and sighed. Then she said, "Go on."

Ginko leaned forward in his chair. "At first I believed that you were simply the reincarnation of someone who was close to me in the past. Most likely a family member. It all seemed to fit. Your age fit. Your appearance fit. But.."

She finished his last sentence for him, ".. but I have two eyes."

"Yes. And you retained all of your original memories of your past life. You even emphasized that fact to me. A reincarnation never does that. There is always memory loss."

"True."

"And so, with two eyes and all your memories intact, it became obvious to me that you were never exposed to the light of the ginko, nor are you a reincarnation."

"Both also true."

She looked down. "I am Nui. I am not a reincarnation of her. I am the original, the woman who took you in after your mother died."

"No, you are not Nui."

She looked at him again, "I assure you I am."

"I'm sorry. You are not Nui."

"I'm not?"

"No."

"Why do you think so?"

"Because I know that you are not human. You are mushi. You are made of 100% mushi. Of pure kouki energy. You were probably created in the tokoyami's pond by the white ginko. The ginko aborbs memories. For some reason it then decided to manifest Nui's memories again. In you. And so you were created, and then you traveled through the underground light-veins. You were probably attracted here by the huge pool of energy that exists under this hill."

She approached him, her eyes gentle and pleading. She offered her hand. "Take my wrist." Ginko did. "Now feel it. It has a pulse." It did. "If you slice my wrist it will bleed. If you stab me I will die. I will age, just like you. Even though I am made of kouki, eventually I will grow old and die, just like you."

"Yoki, please understand." She tapped her head. "She is here. Every memory I have of you is here. Every feeling that I ever had is here."

Adashino rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "Hmm. This is an interesting philosophical question. Is she human now?"

Ginko quickly responded, "What do you mean? Of course she isn't human!"

"Are you sure? After all, what defines our being human? What distinguishes us from non-sentient life? Is it our ability to make rational judgments? To make moral choices? To know right from wrong?"

Ginko tried to protest, "But.."

The girl knelt and held Ginko's hand tightly. "Yoki, look at me. I am real. It is my memories and feelings that define who I am, what makes me human, what makes all of us who we are. I am your adoptive mother. Or to be more accurate, I am Shuuri, who was Nui, who adopted you. I am Shuuri, and I am just as real as she was. I admit that I have new capabilities and powers that I did not have before, and I also admit that my personality has gradually changed over the years, but that Is normal. All humans change that way. As we age, as we gain new life experiences, we all change. It is only natural that we do so."

Adashino said thoughtfully, "Ginko, as a mushi-master you know better than most that the body and soul are indeed separate. There are many mushi that can decouple the two, even transfer them between bodies. So who is to say this is any different? After all, a body is just a vessel."

Shuuri said, "Thank you." She then turned back. "Yoki, please understand, if you take away someone's life memories, if you take away their feelings and their knowledge of self identity, it is as if you killed that person. Memories are so powerful because they are critical to our existence. It makes us who we are. It is literally everything we have, don't you see? That is why so many mushi feed on memories, because of their power."

She added, "But there is more. Humans are unique among all the animals in one other important way. A very important one."

Ginko said, "Which is?"

"As humans we have a natural born yearning, a yearning to seek out something greater beyond ourselves, something greater than we are."

Adashino nodded. "Only humans try to seek out and find God."

"Yes. And in that way we humans are unique. We are the only creatures who go out and try to find something greater than ourselves, to try to transcend our existence. No other animal thinks that way. All animals wish to survive, true, but only humans wish to transcend."

She continued to kneel before him. "Yoki, please listen to me. I admit I have changed. And not just because of the years passing. Originally I went to the pond to try to find out why my family was taken from me, the reason for it, and what had become of them. And what I have seen since then is.. incredible. I found.. I found everything. I found my family. My husband, my child. I met them, we talked, I rejoiced with them. A revelation. I learned about and saw the far shore. I saw that which exists beyond the end of our mortal lives. I actually saw it!"

Both men stared at her.

Then Ginko said quietly, "You saw it. And now you dance and sing."

"Yes. I do now. Before I was a sad old woman. Don't you see? The secret? It is so simple: God [Kami] is infinite. He is literally beyond our comprehension.."

Adashino interjected, "Ah. I see. And because we cannot comprehend an infinite God, at least not directly, it means that in a sense the mushi are in a way closer to Him than we are. It is because mushi simply exist. They are the most primitive form of life. They are. God is the I AM. He simply is. Both simply exist, each on a level that is incomprehensible to humans but for opposite reasons: mushi, because they are so simple, and God, because He is infinite."

She smiled at the doctor. "Yes. You are a wise man. We can never hope to truly understand or comprehend either one, and yet both exist. They are."

Adashino nodded. "Of course. It is the secret that it is not a secret. So simple and yet so profound."

Her smile grew. "It is so simple that is not a secret at all. And.." She paused.

Ginko said, "And?"

She spoke softly, "And there is a bridge."

Adashino asked, "A bridge?"

"Yes. I saw a spiritual bridge, an eternal one. It exists between the finite and the infinite. I saw it crossing the chasm. A living bridge built on love. I saw it! And it's alive!"

Ginko touched the girl's face. "All right, all right. I'll accept what you say. I won't quibble over metaphysical philosophy with you, nor will I argue with the good doctor here. Let's just say that I accept your identity as a person, whatever form that happens to be now. Will that be satisfactory?"

She bowed her head. "Thank you."

Then he said, "Very well. So what do I call you then?"

She tilted her head in thought. "I think Shuuri would be best. I am the girl who was Nui, who adopted you."

"All right, Shuuri. And again, thank you for saving my life."

Adashino was still standing. He then said quietly to the girl, "He still doesn't know."

Ginko was surprised again. "What? My guess about you was wrong?"

Shuuri looked down. "No, you were correct about me. But it is not the reason why I summoned Adashino here."

"Then why..?"

"To help you. He is your friend. Together we will help get you through this."

Ginko was starting to become a bit concerned. "To get through what? What's going on here?"

Shuuri looked at Adashino. He simply nodded. "Do it."

She knelt and proceeded to unwrap the ball of bandages that surrounded Ginko's ankles and feet.

"Yoki, your feet were very badly frostbitten after you fell into the river. When I found you they were solid blocks of ice. After they thawed they had turned completely black."

She kept unwrapping.

"No.."

Her face was now a mass of tears. "Yoki, I am so very sorry. I didn't have the heart to tell you. I delayed as long as I could, but I had no choice. Your feet turned gangrenous. I knew the infection was going to eventually kill you. I was able to use the fire mushi to cauterize and seal the cuts I made to the severed arteries to prevent the infection from spreading, but.."

She finished unwrapping the bandages.

"No!"

His feet were gone.

* * *

**A/N:**

* See Season 2, Episode 11, "Cushion of Grass"

** See Season 1, Episode 20, "A Sea of Writings"

*** See Season 1, Episode 17, "Closed Spaces". A _uro_ is a spider-like mushi that weaves two cocoons that can be used to send a letter between the two cocoons. The letter is folded and inserted into the first cocoon. It disappears and then appears in the second one.

*4 See Season 2, Episode 14: "Hidden Cove"


	3. Chapter 3: The Master of the Hill

**Chapter 3: The Master of the Hill**

The next morning Ginko refused to get out of bed. For the rest of the day he remained curled up in a fetal position under the covers. His eye stared at nothing.

He curled himself tighter. His useless leg-stumps were pulled into his chest. As he did so he bitterly cursed the gods; how could they do this to him?

He could never again walk alone among his beloved mushi at night. He could never again explore the wild forests and glens to discover and marvel at those beautiful creatures. Even with a wheelchair or a cart he would be limited to travel only along the main roads, where mushi seldom ventured. He would no longer be able to watch their beautiful glow. Because of the steepness of The Hill he wouldn't even be able to visit the mushi that were floating only a few hundred yards away, right on his very doorstep.

All that was taken away from him now. He knew that his life was over.

Shuuri came into the room. She said softly, "The day is getting late and you have not yet eaten anything. Can I make you something?"

"Go away."

"Please. You must eat. You need to build up your strength."

"Whatever for? Just go away!"

She looked at him sadly in silence. Finally she said, "Yoki, I'm so sorry. I know I should have told you sooner."

Her voice started to break. "I'm so very sorry.."

His anger grew. He sat up and attacked her savagely. "Why didn't you just leave me in the snow? Why didn't you let me die? Curse you!"

His bitter words sliced through her like a sword. Tears streamed down her face. She turned around and fled the room.

He continued to brood alone in his dark thoughts. He grimly thought that he was always a walking curse to others, that he was a curse his whole life even as a boy. And now he was yelling curses at her.

He knew that many people believed he brought ill-omen with him wherever he went. More than once he was chased away by angry villagers carrying pitch-forks who believed that their troubles with mushi were caused by him.

And maybe they were right. He attracted mushi. Maybe his presence caused the mushi to create the very same problems and illnesses that he tried so diligently to cure.

He never felt so bitter and so worthless.

An hour later he sensed a subaudible vibration of the bed's headboard. It was caused by Shuuri closing the door to her own room. Ginko pressed his ear against the headboard and closed his eye to listen. He could just make out Adashino talking to Shuuri.

Adashino said, "No, it is too risky."

The girl responded, "I know Yoki. His strength. It will work."

"The bond between them would have to be incredibly powerful."

"It will be. That power, you know how strong it is. It is the most powerful force in the universe."

"True, it is. But even if it works we still might lose him forever."

"We won't."

"Are you sure? How do you know? He could suffer a fate worse than death. After you had perished at least you had your family's memories to comfort you and you were happy. But if he crosses over he will be lost in the mist. All alone, with no way home."

"The guardian will guide him back. I am certain of it."

There was silence.

Finally Shuuri said, "Adashino, we have to do this. After all he has done for us, for your village, for me, for everyone, we at least owe him this chance. No matter the risk. We need to give him that hope."

"I suppose you are right. And he would never agree to our plan otherwise."

"No, he would not."

"So what do we do now?"

"We wait."

* * *

More days passed. Ginko was refusing all food despite Shuuri's best efforts to get him to eat. He was growing weaker. He didn't care.

On the seventh day there was a knock on the front door. From his bed Ginko could hear Shuuri make a joyful shout. There were mixed voices overlapping that he could not make out clearly. A commotion.

Ginko sat up and waited.

Finally, Shuuri opened his bedroom door and entered the room. Her face was unreadable.

"Yoki, there is someone here to meet you."

"I don't care. Leave me alone."

"Please. Come out."

"Why?"

"Because a visitor is here who very much wants to see you."

"I'm not accepting any visitors." He turned his head away.

Shuuri held out her hand. "Please. Come with me. An important person is here."

He turned his head back to face her. "Who is it?"

"A mushi-master."

"Which one? I know several. Is it Suguro?"

"One that might possibly be able to heal you."

His voice was bitter again. "That's impossible. You cannot heal my legs, they are gone."

"Just come and see."

It was clear to him that she would not leave him in peace, so he finally gave in to her incessant badgering. "All right. Whatever. Fine." He waived his hand. "Bring the chair over."

* * *

Shuuri wheeled Ginko into the main room.

And there she was.

It was Tanyuu Karibusa.

He was astonished. It had been five years since he first met the girl, the Fourth Scribe of the Great Library. She was doomed by a hereditary curse to have a blackened and useless leg. He knew that it would eventually kill her. Even so, he had made a promise to her that if she could ever walk that they would travel together, side by side. They would journey together through the hills and glens of the land for the rest of their lives.

She loved him. It was only her young age and her disability that kept them apart. And now here she was, a beautiful and fully grown maiden, a far cry from the shy girl that Ginko had first made his promise to so long ago.

And Ginko saw that her right leg was now white and unblemished.

And her smile was radiant.

Behind them Shuuri and Adashino were standing and smiling at him. They were clearly enjoying the moment.

All Ginko could say was, "Tanyuu.."

She finally approached and embraced him. Her skin was soft to the touch, and her hair was long and fragrant. She whispered into his ear, "I missed you so much. I am so sorry for my delay. I would have come faster if I could."

Tanyuu's elderly aunt, Tama Minai, then groused to herself, "Why did that idiot boy have to pick such a high and remote place to live? Ugh, my back is killing me.."

Tanyuu continued to whisper to Ginko, "But as you can see Tama insisted on coming with me so I was delayed. I'm sorry. She is a slow traveller."

Tanyuu turned and addressed her aunt. "Tama, you didn't have to come with me you know. I don't need a chaperone anymore. I am of age."

Tama was indignant. "But of course I had to come! I could never miss this! I could never miss your mmpphf.." Tama stopped talking because Tanyuu had gently but firmly placed her hand over the old woman's mouth to shut her up.

Tanyuu looked a bit flustered. "Uh, my apologies. She's getting a bit senile. Just ignore her. She babbles sometimes." Tama's eyes glared back at her niece, then she nodded. Tanyuu removed her hand and Tama remained quiet.

Ginko was still in shock. "Tanyuu.. I'm so happy.. but how..?"

"It took me five years but I finally was able to contain the Forbidden Mushi and exorcise them from my leg. They are still inside of me, but now I control them so they no longer are a threat to my life. They still provide the ink for the scrolls that I write." She raised her right index finger. Ginko saw that it had a small smudge on it. "I still have their gift of magic writing and perfect memorization of the scrolls. And I have written a new scroll that explains to my descendants how to contain and control the Forbidden Mushi as well. So the line of Scribes will continue."

"That's wonderful."

She approached him again. "Yes. I am so happy now. We can now travel together. We can explore every hill and dale, visit every mountain and every deep valley, every lake and stream. We will journey together and discover all of the wonders of the mushi. You and I together."

"Yes, I made that promise to you." He looked down. "It is a pity that I cannot keep it. It would have been perfect."

"But you can."

"How?"

Tanyuu turned and presented Ginko with a small wooden box.

He asked, "What is inside?"

"Open it." He did.

Ginko chuckled to himself. He saw the soft glow of the mushi that was inside.

He understood. "Of course." He smiled. "You will be my legs."

"Yes."

Shuuri whispered to Tama, "That was quick of him. You know, sometimes that boy is not as stupid as he looks." Tama nodded and whispered back, "I know. Hard to believe isn't it?"

Tanyuu ignored the old women's jibes. The maiden then kneeled before the man she loved.

"Ginko, our roles are reversed now. I will travel far and wide.."

He completed her thought. ".. and I will remain here."

"Yes."

Adashino said, "So what is inside the box is.."

Ginko explained, "They are _kairogi_, which means 'flow'. They allow someone who loves another to become spiritually connected to that person and to communicate with that person over long distances. If I ingest the kairogi I will be able to share my thoughts with Tanyuu no matter where she is."

"Yes. I remember. I had no idea that such creatures existed until Shuuri told me about them during dinner on my first evening here. Truly remarkable. You must love this woman very much."

Ginko turned to face the young maiden and smiled as he said, "I do."

He had never said it aloud before. In reaction she blushed and looked down.

He continued to gaze at her lovingly for a moment, then he leaned forward and gently placed his hand under her chin and propped it up. Their eyes were inches apart. Again he said to her, "I do." She then held his hand in her own.

There was unspoken communication. He finally released her chin as he leaned back in his chair. She did not let go of his hand.

Finally, Ginko turned to Adashino and explained, "I think I was already starting to fall in love with her at our very first meeting. I didn't even realize it was happening at the time." It was because he had immediately recognized that she had an amazing depth and strength of character, which was combined with a kindness and a gentleness that he found to be so wonderful. And she had such passion for her work despite the fact that she knew it would eventually kill her. He marveled as she continued her writings and ignored the pain. He had never seen such strength before.

Eventually he slowly realized that he was indeed falling in love with her. But he knew it would never work because of his curse and because of her disability. And so instead he would come back to visit the library at least 1-2 times each year. And every time he did, he found that she had grown more wise, more graceful, more serene, and more beautiful.

"Each time I visited the library we would spend hours together in private conversation, and every minute I talked with her my love for her grew a just a little bit more." Then he looked down. "Tanyuu, I'm so sorry I never confessed to you. I didn't want to hurt you."

She used both of her hands to hold his. She was still kneeling. "You have no need to apologize. Words were never necessary. I always knew your feelings for me, just as you have always known mine for you."

Her grip tightened as she went on. "And with the kairogi we will be able to have those wonderful long conversations again no matter where I am. And not just a few times a year but continuously, with our minds sharing our thoughts and feelings for the rest of our lives."

The doctor then asked Ginko, "But isn't there a danger? If the kairogi are used too much? That eventually the kairogi will cause your consciousness to wander away from your body and drift into the endless mist and become forever lost? If that happens you will never wake up again."

Ginko turned and nodded, "Normally yes, that is true. That is why kairogi are dangerous and are normally purged as a harmful infection."

Shuuri spoke up. "It will work because Ginko's astral lifeline is now anchored to this place by the guardian. This is now his permanent home."

Adashino asked, "But how does it work?"

"All of the light-veins in the land are interconnected. They are a network, like a watershed. Eventually they lead to this place. Ginko only needs to find any light-vein and listen to the call of the guardian, then travel in that direction. Each time the vein branches or splits, he need only follow the direction of the guardian's call. Ultimately he will return here."

Ginko asked, "Shuuri, how certain are you about this? Can you trust the guardian like that?"

"Of course I can."

"How can you be so sure?"

"Because this is The Hill. It stands astride the largest reservoir of kouki anywhere. This special place is where all mushi life ultimately originates. And so it has a special guardian. A sentient one. One that can actually understand human thoughts and customs."

Ginko chuckled, "A mushi that is sentient. I should have guessed. Shuuri is right, I must be getting slow."

Finally he said, "The guardian is you, Shuuri."

She smiled at him. "Follow the light veins. Listen for my call. And I will always guide you home."

Ginko nodded. "Yes, thank you. Coming back home won't be a problem."

Shuuri replied, "It will not. As the guardian I can guarantee your return. And as long as you are here with me, you will be the co-guardian with me as well."

"I see. So that explains why the kuchinawa attacked me."

"Yes. You weren't merely shooing it away. You were challenging it. It attacked you because it recognized you as a guardian. A soon-to-be-one anyway. And so it tried to eat you. It eats only guardians. And that would have been especially tragic in your case because it would have also eaten all the memories of your existence. All the help you had given to all of those hundreds of people over the years would have been forgotten."

She took a step toward her adopted son. "Yoki, I love you. That is why I am here. I cannot ever leave this place. I travelled here through a light-vein from the pond with the tokoyami. Now that I am the guardian of the Hill I can exist only here now. I am bound by the kouki under this place.

"And here I will remain. I am your guardian. Your protector. Nothing can harm you here. During your astral travel when your physical body falls asleep, I will guard it for you. As long as I am here the mushi will not approach this place. Nor will I permit any human to harm you."

Ginko then turned again to face Tanyuu, "And so I will be able to safely leave my body and travel with you, to share your thoughts and feelings.."

Tanyuu said, "Yes. It will be wonderful."

Then Ginko sighed, "I suppose it is enough for me.." His face looked a bit disappointed.

"Ginko, what is the matter? I thought you would be happy about this?"

"Oh I am. It is just that I will only be able to hear your thoughts about what you see. Your narration. I won't be able to see anything for myself. True, I will be able to reach out with my mind and share your thoughts, even your feelings, but only that. I won't be able to observe the mushi myself. You can speak to me but I will be blind. The kairogi transmits only thoughts, nothing more."

Tanyuu tightened her grip on his hand. "That's not necessarily true.."

"What?"

"If the love connection is strong enough, it is possible to communicate much more than that."

Ginko's eye lit up. "Really? You mean.."

Tanyuu was still kneeling before the love of her life. "Yes, Ginko. If the love connection is powerful enough, if it is strong enough, you will be able share all my senses: sight, smell, sound, touch, taste. You will be able to see everything I see. Hear everything I hear. Even walk beside me."

He looked down at her face in wonder. "That is so.. incredible. Why, that is absolutely wonderful! Yes! But how do we generate that much power?"

Tanyuu stood up again. "Ginko, look at me."

He did. She was wearing a formal kimono.

A red and white kimono.

Ah. So that was why Tama insisted on coming.

Ginko shook his head with a smile.

Tanyuu said to him shyly, "After the ceremony, we will need to.."

He understood.

Then he made a hearty laugh. That wonderful girl. That wonderful wonderful girl.

Adashino stepped forward and addressed the happy couple. "Ah. I see. Well, you both are fortunate. In my village I am duly authorized to perform the ancient ceremony."

Tanyuu bowed to him. "Thank you."

And so, with Shuuri and Tama both looking on as the duly designated representatives of each family, Adashino asked the couple, "Well, shall we begin?"

* * *

_Some years later._

The great master was sitting on his throne. The farmer kneeled before the _Oka no Omo_.

Ginko looked down at him. He felt completely fake, like he was playing the role of the Great Wizard of Oz.

He sighed. _Let's get this charade over with._ The aging man finally spoke the required lines to the supplicant that was kneeling before him. "What is your problem, my child?"

The farmer's head was still down so Ginko took the opportunity to quietly tug at the uncomfortable collar of the stupid ceremonial robe that Shuuri had sewn for him. It itched his neck.

Shuuri was wearing her own ceremonial outfit as she stood respectfully behind him like a resplendent shrine maiden. She acted the role of his servant. Ginko did not mind that part of the charade because it prevented her from slinging any insulting jibes at him while any visitors were present. The truth was that she had as much authority in this place as he did, perhaps even more. _Pay no attention to the girl behind the curtain!_

The farmer finally raised his head from the floor. He trembled, then he spoke: "Great master, it is my daughter. She has faded away."

"Faded?"

"Yes. There was a lunar eclipse last month, and she ran outside to watch it..."

{ Ginko: Tanyuu, what do the archives say? }

{ Tanyuu: There was no such lunar eclipse last month. There hasn't been one in over a year. }

{ Ginko: Good. Thank you for the information. }

{ Shuuri: Hmm. Fake eclipse. Probably _tsukihami_. I think we can help. }

{ Ginko: I concur. }

{ Tanyuu: As do I. }

Ginko smiled inwardly. The girl could be saved. He remembered long ago the _huhamukage_* and a young girl he had met named Hiyako and her sister Hinata. The latter had disappeared in a similar fashion. It had happened because the girls' mother was pregnant with the twins when she was exposed to a false lunar eclipse, where the light of the moon had been consumed by the _tsukihami_ [moon devourer]. It caused her first daughter to become an albino that could not see the sun without being badly burned. Her twin sister, Hinata, was protected from the rays of the tsukihami in utero because her fetus was positioned behind Hiyako such that her sister protected her from the harmful rays.

And so Hiyako was condemned to never go outside, to never see the sun or the birds or the sky. It had caused Hiyako to become bitter about her life of perpetual darkness and isolation. She angrily railed against her fate. She wished aloud that Hinaka could take her place, or, failing that, that she herself had never been born. Hinaka heard her curses and was in tears because she loved her sister so dearly. To trade places? Hinata asked, "How would I.. even do that?" Her sister bitterly responded, "If you cannot, then just go away! Go away!"

Her sister became distressed and fled. And the huhamukage took her and made her disappear even as it removed Hiyako's curse. And so Hiyako's wish was fulfilled. But as she faded away, Hinata was glad to die in her sister's place. For greater love has no one than this: to lay down one's life for another.

She was gone.

Hiyako soon repented of her selfish wish and ran outside to search for her sister in the dark. She searched and searched and finally found her as a faded shade. She was now an ethereal being who had crossed to the other side, who could not be seen by anyone except her own sister. Eventually, with Ginko's guidance, by talking to the shade of her sister and being with her constantly and holding her hand, Hiyako was able to slowly, over many days, bring back the one whom she loved.

Ginko looked at the farmer with his eye. "Do you love your daughter?"

"Yes. More than you can imagine."

He smiled. "Then there is a way."

And so together, Ginko, Shuuri, and Tanyuu, using their combined knowledge and expertise regarding everything related to mushi biology and pathology, which together far surpassed all other mushi-shi, had strived to help and care for all those who made the long and difficult trek up to The Hill.

Hundreds of villagers and farmers for miles and miles in every direction made the journey to The Hill to seek the master's help. The journey became famous, a trek known as the _Oka ni Tabi_, the Pilgrimage to the Hill.

And so for the rest of his natural life Ginko would remain in that place, for he knew that this was his destiny and his purpose: To help all those in need, to help them cope with and understand the most enigmatic form of life on the planet.

For he was the _Oka no Omo_.

The Master of the Hill.

**The End**

* * *

**A/N:**

* See the OVA episode, "Hihamukage". The episode takes place between Season 1 and Season 2.


End file.
